The present invention relates to a taping apparatus and process for electronic components, arid in particular, for storing chip-type electronic components in storage compartments within a tape, which is wound to a tape reel, and for sealing the upper opening of the storage compartment with a cover tape.
A conventional taping apparatus and process for electronic components will be described hereinafter.
Conventionally, electronic components to be stored in a tape are placed in a feeding table, picked up and transported by a suction tool mounted on a rotating arm, and stored one by one in component-storage compartments within the tape. In this procedure, the components which are picked up to a deviated position with respect to the suction tool are pinched to a right position by a pair of position-setting hooks while being transported, and stored in the storage compartment in the tape.
One problem with this procedure is the danger of damaging the electronic components by regulating the position of the components with the position setting hooks. Specifically, it becomes difficult to set the components to a right position by the position-setting hooks when the size of the electronic components becomes small. While it is possible to mount the suction tool on a head moving the X and Y directions for picking up the electronic components from the component-feeding device and storing the same in the tape, this creates an inconvenience that the traveling time of the moving head increases. This results in a low production efficiency of storing the components. A second problem will be described hereinafter.
Conventionally, a procedure is repeated multiple times, wherein the chip-type electronic component is stored in the storage compartment within the tape, which is wound to the tape reel, and the tape is advanced by one pitch. The electronic component thereof is transported in the storage compartment within the tape to a predetermined position, and is taped by sealing the upper opening of the storage compartment within the tape with the cover tape.
However, in the procedure described above, the electronic components are stored in the storage compartments one at a time, and each time the tape main body is advanced downstream by one pitch using a tape-transporting mechanism, resulting in an increasing procedure time for the tape transportation.
Furthermore, the vibration (braking) and other adversary effects, which are caused by starting or stopping the transportation of the tape, bring about the popping out of the electronic components from the storage compartments and other undesirable disorders. This makes the conventional one-pitch advancing scheme, which cannot avoid the cumulative number of transportation (braking), subject to the inconvenience caused by the increasing effect of the vibration.
Conventional taping apparatus also lack the capability of automatically measuring or sensing the state of the electronic components and the compartments in the tape for storing the same. This is increasingly becoming an issue as the size of the electronic components are decreasing and a precision control of the taping procedures are becoming more difficult.
The present invention securely stores the electronic components in a tape without sacrificing the production efficiency.
In one embodiment of the taping apparatus and the taping process for the electronic components of the present invention, chip-type electronic components are stored in a tape, the electronic components are brought to the proper position for the pickup and are sucked up and held by a holding tool placed on a X-Y table. Then, the electronic components held by the holding tool are observed by a sensing device while being transported by the rotation of a rotating table. The position of the holding tool with respect to the tape is adjusted by moving the X-Y table based on the result of the position recognition, and the electronic components held by the holding tool are stored in the storage compartments in the tape one by one, constituting the characteristics of the invention. This increases the productivity of storing the components since multiple holding tools pick up the electronic components one by one and store the same in the storage compartments in the tape making use of the rotation of the rotating table.
As the rotating table equipped with the holding tools is mounted on the X-Y table, the positions of the holding tool and electronic components held by the holding tool with respect to the tape can be changed or adjusted by moving the X-Y table, whereby it is possible to correct the position of the electronic components misplaced in a deviated position with respect to the holding tool, without causing any damage to the electronic components as in the case of the conventional position-adjusting method using the hooks for position setting and other tools.
Furthermore, in another embodiment, the taping apparatus and process for the electronic components have a component-feeding device including another X-Y table for feeding which moves in the X and Y directions on the X-Y table and the electronic components are juxtaposed in a matrix on the table.
Therefore, while the position of the electronic component held by the holding tool is being adjusted with respect to the storing position in the tape, the electronic component to be picked up next is brought to the pickup position by moving the feeding table on the X-Y table in the X and Y directions, resulting in smooth component feeding.
Furthermore, in still another embodiment, the taping apparatus and the taping process for the electronic components of the present invention have a thrusting device, on the X-Y table, for pushing up the electronic components which are juxtaposed on the feeding table.
This enables the thrusting device to perform the action of thrusting the electronic component at a fixed position for the pickup by the holding tool with respect to the X-Y table, while the X-Y table is being moved.
Furthermore, in yet another embodiment, the taping apparatus and process for the electronic components of the invention have a component-posture sensing device for recognizing the position of the electronic component held by the holding tool is mounted, on the X-Y table, along the transportation passage of the electronic component.
This makes it possible to recognize the position of the electronic component held by the holding tool while the X-Y table being moved, thereby enabling the X-Y table to move for adjusting the position of the electronic component based on the result of the position recognition.
Furthermore, in another embodiment, the taping apparatus and process for the electronic components of the present invention have a feeding-position sensing device for recognizing the position of the electronic component fed by the electronic-component feeding device is equipped on the X-Y table.
This makes it possible to recognize the position of the electronic component fed by the feeding device while the X-Y table being moved, and the result of the position recognition is used during the storing procedure of the electronic component to the storage compartment in the tape.
The invention also discloses decreasing the time for the taping procedure.
To decrease the time for the taping procedure, in one embodiment, in the taping apparatus and process for the electronic components of the present invention, the apparatus and process for storing chip-type electronic components in storage compartments within a tape, which is wound to a tape reel, and for sealing the upper opening of the storage compartment with a cover tape, the procedure for storing the electronic component is repeated a plurality of times, wherein the electronic component on the feeding table is picked up by the holding tool of the component-storage mechanism and stored in the compartment, and after the repetition of the procedure storing the component, the main tape body is advanced downstream by a predetermined set of pitches using a tape-transporting mechanism.
Thus, it is possible to reduce the time for the tape transportation compared to the conventional one-pitch procedure.
Furthermore, the taping apparatus and process for the electronic components of the invention may include a storage-position sensing device for recognizing the waiting position of a plurality of storage compartments for storing the electronic components by the component-storage mechanism.
Herein, the number of the plurality of the storage compartments, which corresponds to the predetermined pitches of advancing the tape, is determined by the sensing area (field of vision) of the storage-position sensing device, thus, it is possible to appropriately set up the time for the tape transportation depending on the sensing area.
Furthermore, the efficiency of the storage procedure of the electronic components increases, since the storage-position sensing device recognizes the waiting position of the plurality of storage compartments for storing the electronic components by the component-storage mechanism beforehand.
Still furthermore, the taping apparatus and process for the electronic components of the present invention may have a tape-position regulating mechanism for regulating the position of the tape at a location outside the sensing area of the storage-position sensing device observing a plurality of the storage compartments.
Thus, the efficiency of the storage procedure of the electronic components increases, since the main tape body is restrained by the tape restraining mechanism so that the contact of the holding tool to the main tape body and the other adversary effects such as mechanical vibrations do not change the position of the storage compartments while the electronic components being stored.
The present invention resolves the problem caused by the time reduction scheme for the tape transportation, which will be described hereafter. After a procedure for storing the electronic component in the storage compartment is repeated a plurality of times, the main tape body is advanced downstream at one time by a predetermined set of pitches using a tape-transporting mechanism.
That is, there is a concern that the electronic components may pop out from the storage compartments while the tape is being transported after storing the electronic components in the storage compartments. In the widely accepted conventional design, along the transportation passage, the upper side of the tape is protected by a cover so that the tape is protected during the transportation and the popping out from the components are restrained. An opening is often created in the portion of the protecting cover in which the storage procedure for the components is performed. Though the design above does not provide any inconvenience in the scheme that the tape is transported each time when a single electronic component is stored in the storage compartment, a larger opening is needed which corresponds to a plurality of storage compartments for storing a plurality of the electronic components in the scheme of the present invention that a plurality of the electronic components are transported at one time after being stored in the storage compartments.
This creates a disorder of popping out of the electronic components from the storage compartments due to the vibration (braking) caused by starting or stopping the tape transportation.
Therefore, to solve the problem above, the taping apparatus and process for the electronic components of the present invention have an upper opening of the plurality of storage compartments covered by a shutter while the tape is being advanced downstream by the predetermined set of pitches using the tape-transporting mechanism, after a procedure is repeated a plurality of times, wherein the electronic component on the feeding table is picked up by the holding tool of the component storage mechanism, and stored in the storage compartment based on the result of position recognition by the storage-position sensing device.
This prohibits the popping out of the electronic components from the storage compartments while the tape is being advanced by the predetermined set of pitches using the tape-transporting mechanism.
Furthermore, in another embodiment, the taping apparatus and process for the electronic components of the present invention have a tape-restraining mechanism which keeps the position of the tape at a location outside the sensing area of the storage-position sensing device observing a plurality of the storage compartments.
This improves the efficiency of the procedure of storing the electronic components in the storage compartments within the tape.
Furthermore, in the taping apparatus and process for the electronic components of the present invention, the shutter is linked to the movement along the Y direction of the component-storage mechanism.
Therefore, the efficiency of the procedure improves, and the insecure storing forms of the electronic components due to the electrostatic charges, the vibration, the hooking, and other adversary effects during storing are regulated by moving the shutter while the holding tool is being moved.
Based on the present invention, it is also possible to increase the reliability of the testing of the electronic properties of the electric components for the taping.
That is, conventionally, there is a possibility of the occurrence of the problem described hereinafter, since the testing of the electronic properties of the electric components by a component-testing mechanism is performed prior to storing the electronic components in the storage compartments within the tape.
For example, when the component-storage mechanism has the widely accepted suction tool which picks up the component by sacking the upper surface of the same and transports the electronic components by suction, naturally the suction tool needs to contact the upper surface of the electronic components. Then, there is a danger of making the components defective upon the impact of the suction tool. Thus, it is possible that the electronic component judged as non-defective at the time of the testing becomes defective before the same is stored in the storage compartment within the tape after the completion of the testing, resulting in the introduction of the defective components into the tape.
Therefore, to solve the problem above, in one embodiment, in the taping apparatus and process for the electronic components of the present invention the electronic component is tested in the storage compartment by a component-testing mechanism, after the electronic components are picked up on the feeding table by the holding tool of the component-storage mechanism one by one. The tape is then transported to a predetermined position by the tape-transporting mechanism with the electronic components being stored in the storage compartment in the tape.
This makes it possible to suppress the introduction of the defective electronic components, conventionally taking place between the completion of the testing and the storing the electronic components in the storage compartments within the tape.
Furthermore, in the taping apparatus and process for the electronic components of the present invention, the component-testing mechanism has a plate for restraining the components as component-position regulating mechanism which regulates the positions of the electronic components in the storage compartment. This increases the reliability of testing the electronic components in the storage compartments.
The above descriptions of the present invention and the advantages of the same will become more apparent from detailed description given hereinafter accompanied by the drawings.